Desert Floor Biological Crust

The knobby black crust here includes lichen mosses green algae microfungi and bacteria but is dominated by cyanobacteria.

Desert floor biological crust.

Nevertheless collectively they do nothing less than hold together the desert floor. 10 6 and protect desert surfaces from erosional shear stresses imposed by overland flow and strong winds allen 2005 2010. Typically composed of cyanobacteria fungi lichens and algae they cover a wide variety of undisturbed sonoran desert soils fig. Gillettevulnerability of desert biological soil crusts to wind erosion.

Biological soil crusts form a living groundcover that is the foundation of desert plant life. Cryptobiotic crust is best known and probably most studied from the protected lands of the national parks of the colorado plateau where it forms dark lumpy patches on the red soil. The influences of crust development soil texture and disturbance journal of arid environments 39 1998 pp. The paper is titled dynamic cyanobacterial response to hydration and dehydration in a desert biological soil crust arid and semi arid deserts make up about 40 percent of earth s total land mass.

Although it may not look like it is alike the cryptobiotic crust covering the desert lands of southern utah are vital to the health of the local ecosystem. Since then researchers have investigated many different aspects of these communities and have shown that although small to microscopic biological soil crusts are critical in many ecological processes of deserts. In many places soil crust comprises over 70 percent of all living ground cover. Each of the crust s individual organisms holds little biological significance on its own.

Biological soil crusts bscs consist of assemblages of living organisms on soil or rock surfaces in arid and semiarid areas. They are found throughout the world with varying species composition and cover depending on topography soil characteristics climate plant community microhabitats and disturbance regimes biological soil crusts perform important ecological roles including carbon fixation. But if you stop and look at the ground for a few minutes you may find a diverse community of tiny organisms all working together. Biological soil crust is found throughout the world from the colorado plateau s high desert to the arctic.

Biological soil crusts at tonto national monument. They also perform vital ecosystem functions. But it is equally important to desert prairie and tundra ecosystems and also colonizes bare ground in humid temperate environments. Biological soil crusts are communities of living organisms on the soil surface in arid and semi arid ecosystems.